Mo. House to push for caucus bill

Missouri House leaders will now attempt to get rid of the state’s presidential primary and replace it with party caucuses. A similar move fell short in the Missouri Senate.

Some Senate Republicans tried and failed Monday night to swap out the bill to move the primary from February to March with one that would have replaced it with caucuses. Speaker Pro-tem Shane Schoeller (R, Willard) has filed a new bill in the House that would do the same thing.

“If we have a primary election vote, it’ll essentially be a well-funded, taxpayer-funded straw poll," Schoeller said. "It will mean nothing when our delegates go to the national convention."

Schoeller says both national parties have warned Missouri that it could lose up to half its delegates if the primary date isn’t moved.

The state GOP has already decided to use caucuses in March to choose delegates. The state Democratic Party has not yet announced whether it will use caucuses or stick with the February primary.